4 Criteria for a Meaningful and Worthwhile Strategic Objective

Posted by Kristin Arnold on January 30, 2017

I was facilitating a mastermind of manufacturing executives when we started chatting about strategic plans – and more specifically, about what makes a strategic objective “good?” So I offered up my four criteria for a worthwhile strategic objective, and since they scribbled this down in their notes, I thought it might be something worth sharing with you!

For a strategic objective to be meaningful and worthwhile, it should be:

Cross Functional. It should cut across functional boundaries. Ideally, it should involve the entire organization. If it belongs to just one function, then just let that functional head take care of it. It’s not “strategic.”

Long Term. It should take more than one year to complete. If it takes less than one year, it’s operational and belongs in your business plan, not your strategic plan.

Directly Connected to the Strategy. This kinda sounds obvious, but you would be surprised at how many objectives have a rather loose connection to the mission, vision, values and/or strategic statement. Make sure the team can clearly articulate how this specific strategic objective will help the business.

Inspire Passion. So you have this strategic objective that everyone know we should do, but if you don’t have a passionate, committed team willing to do what it takes to make it a reality, then it simply won’t get done. There will always be something more important that will get in the way. Make sure your team is passionate and committed to the objective.

When finalizing your strategic objectives, make sure they meet ALL four criteria – You’ll be well on your way to success!

For valuable tips and strategies for building your own extraordinary team. Subscribe to this monthly newsletter today.

KRISTIN ARNOLD, MBA, CPF, CSP is a high stakes meeting facilitator and professional panel moderator. She’s been facilitating teams of executives and managers in making better decisions and achieving greater results for over 20 years. She is the author of the award-winning book, Boring to Bravo: Proven Presentation Techniques to Engage, Involve and Inspire Audiences to Action.

Connect with Kristin!

Blogroll

Categories

“Kristin helped the U.S. Naval Institute develop an absolutely outstanding Strategic Plan. I’m a strong believer in the process Kristin outlined for us and the way she helped guide us. The plan has withstood the test of time, and is driving significant results. Kristin has my highest possible recommendation!”

Scott Gureck , EVP, Membership and Marketing, U.S. Naval Institute

“We asked Kristin to deliver a program regarding personnel trends geared to our organization and demographics. Kristin was able to quickly understand our organization and to provide concrete ideas and common sense solutions. She did a terrific job pulling it together and delivering it in a way that was fun and inspiring.”

John Phelps , CEO, State Bar of Arizona

“Kristin Arnold is the best I’ve ever seen on the subject of ‘effective teams,’ at all levels from senior execs to problem-solving teams…. I highly recommend her if you ever need some outside help on your directions for team effectiveness.”

“After literally decades of personally participating in these exercises, I was pleasantly surprised at Kristin’s skill in making this off-site one of the best ever. She exceeded all the team goals I set and provided several useful recommendations in her closing remarks and leave behind materials. Kristin is my first choice in the future to help me identify and resolve the challenges associated with any large team-building exercise. She has my unqualified recommendation as a facilitator, mentor, and problem solver of the first order.”

Garnett Stowe , Vice President, Raytheon Company

“I have had several opportunities to use the tips, tricks, and tools that you presented in your workshop…and [my next] Steering Committee meeting went extremely well, far exceeding my expectations.”

Leigh Baudreau , Sr Manager, Railinc

After literally decades of personally participating in these exercises, I was pleasantly surprised at Kristin’s skill in making this off-site one of the best ever. She exceeded all the team goals I set and provided several useful recommendations in her closing remarks and leave behind materials. Kristin is my first choice in the future to help me identify and resolve the challenges associated with any large team building exercise. She has my unqualified recommendation as a facilitator, mentor, and problem solver of the first order.”

Garnett Stowe , Vice President, Raytheon Company

“I hired Kristin to work with my Board of Directors to facilitate our strategic planning session. My Board is composed of executive-level distributors and manufacturers. She provided me with the pre-planning support that we needed to keep the Board on-task, facilitated the meeting (totaling wowing my Board) and then provided a post-meeting summary that we used as our blue-print to complete our planning process. She managed the process flawlessly and on-budget.”

“Kristin is a highly skilled facilitator and speaker. She blends great subject matter knowledge with practicality to help groups achieve their objectives. I recommend Kristin without reservation.”

John Farrell , HR Manager, Marathon Oil Company

“Kristin did an excellent job! She kept us on target and used different techniques to reach consensus in a timely manner. We left the session with conceptual goals and action plans.”

Gary C. Beach PE , President McCrone, Inc

“Kristin does a great job of getting the principles across while making the workshop interesting and interactive. Class participants give her rave reviews.The participants in the department’s Leadership Development Program enjoyed your Extraordinary Team Facilitator workshop. They found your presentation to be top-notch. Comments I have heard include such things as…she presented the information in a very informative, non-threatening manner with just the right touch of light humor. Kudos to you on a job well done! On a more personal note, I add to the team’s compliments. I have completed two other facilitation courses by national organizations and found yours to be by far superior both in content and delivery.”